Thursday, November 21, 2013

Mythology class update - November 21

In today's class, we reviewed "Oedipus Rex" and "The Judgment of Paris" - and then we began an overview of "The Iliad." We discussed exactly what happened in the story - and all the things we know about the Trojan war that aren't actually a part of the story (like the Judgment of Paris, the stealing of Helen of Troy, the Trojan horse, and the death of Achilles by an arrow through the heel.). Then we talked about events leading up to the war - and why all those Greek armies were willing to go to war for 10 years to bring a woman back to Sparta - the role of the gods - and about the treachery of Agamemnon. Then we talked about what happened to Agamemnon after he returned home from the war.

The students were given a sheet with 8 Iliad essay topics. They will choose to write about one of these after we are done reading all the plays. It will probably not be due til after the Christmas break. The students can read over the topics now and keep them in mind as we proceed.

Homework:

Oedipus project due December 5 (did you get the email I sent so that you could cut and paste the song chart?).